American League East Power Rankings
Let’s take a look at my rankings of the historic AL East Division of the American League.
1. New York Yankees
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The Yankees did what they had to do in the off season, acquiring another starting pitcher, specifically Carlos Rodon. The Yankees by far have the best starting pitching in the American League (AL) East, and one of best in the entire league. Gerrit Cole (3.51 ERA in 2022) and Carlos Rodon (2.88 ERA in 2022) are two aces at the one-two punch, and the Yankees have a solid three and four spot with Luis Severino (3.18 ERA in 2022) and Nestor Cortez (2.45 ERA in 2022). The rest of the pitching staff in the bullpen are solid, led by Johnathan Loaisiga, Clay Holmes, Michael King and promising results from Wandy Peralta and Ron Marinaccio. The Yankees are heading into the season with the same offense, but have enough power to do damage, led by reining AL MVP Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo Stanton. The Yankees will also get to see a full year of Harrison Bader, who will bring a solid performance in center field, as well as a great contact bat. If DJ LeMahieu can stay healthy alongside these guys, the lineup will be solid all the way through, in addition to the two promising shortstops coming up, Anthony Volpe and Oswald Peraza.
2. Toronto Blue Jays
Via MLB.com
The Toronto Blue Jays are entering the 2023 season with a great starting rotation, Alek Manoah (2.25 ERA in 2022), Kevin Gausman (3.36 ERA in 2022), Hyun-jin Ryu (5.67 ERA in 2022), Chris Bassett (3.43 ERA in 2022) and Jose Berrios (5.23 ERA in 2022) who if can stay healthy, will put together a better season. The Blue Jays offense lost Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Teoscar Hernandez in the offseason, but acquired Daulton Varsho, who will give them versatility in multiple positions. Above all, the offense is still strong with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, George Springer, if healthy, Matt Chapman and Alejandro Kirk. The Blue Jays rotation is second best in the AL East, but the Yankees have a stronger rotation and bat power.
3. Tampa Bay Rays
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The Tampa Bay Rays have a great one-two punch, with Shane McClanahan and Tyler Glasnow. McClanahan had a Cy Young type of year, finishing the season with 2.55 ERA and 194 strikeouts. Glasnow pitched two games in the 2022 season with a 1.45 ERA coming off Tommy John surgery and will continue to be a great starter. The bullpen will continue to be stellar coming off a combined 3.41 ERA in the 2022 season. The Rays will be led by Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena; however, the Rays lack star power to ultimately lead them to success.
4. Baltimore Orioles
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The Baltimore Orioles showed promise last season and have promising prospects coming up. Adley Rutschman, who is coming off a stunner breakout season, and Gunnar Henderson will lead the way. The Orioles have two solid defensive and offensive outfielders, Cedric Mullins and Anthony Santander who will help carry the team, however, the Orioles are lacking veteran leadership. The team is also lacking solid production from their starting pitchers. However, the bullpen had a surprising year in 2022 and will only get better with young prospects coming up. The future is bright for the Orioles, having eight players in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospect List entering 2023 season, which is the most of any team. Only time will tell how good these young players will be.
5. Boston Red Sox
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Boston Red Sox fans were unsure of which direction the team was heading in the offseason. The Red Sox lost Xander Bogaerts and JD Martinez in free agency, who were staples in the middle of the Red Sox lineup. They also lost Trevor Story due to Tommy John surgery who would have been a solid second baseman, as well helped the team offensively. In the offseason, the Red Sox signed Rafael Devers to an 11-year, $331 Million deal, however Devers cannot lead the team to the promise land by himself. The new addition of Kodai Senga may be a solid addition to the lineup, but there are question marks on how he will perform in the MLB. The Red Sox have a struggling starting rotation and bullpen (4.53 team ERA in 2022 season), which will ultimately damper their chances to be successful. The addition of Kenley Jansen will help the Red Sox in the closer role, but the team is missing middle-inning relievers. Overall, the Red Sox needed to make a lot of off-season moves but ultimately did not.
